Compelled to Invade

My first short story for my Patreon followers will be going up on the site on Wednesday 5 October and it’s called Compel. Here’s the opening paragraph:

It’s a bizarre business, to feel grateful for an alien invasion. But it certainly gives meaning in a way few events can. And, beyond that, it is change, change itself, change embodied, and there is a strong possibility it will change me. How exciting. I feel alive for the first time in decades.

Yep, it’s an alien invasion story. I’m a big lover of the alien invasion story, a few of my favourites being Arthur C Clarke’s Childhood’s End, John Wyndham’s Midwich Cuckoos, and, on the other side of the coin, Ursula Le Guin’s The Word for World is Forest. My story isn’t like those stories though. It’s about why the business of being able to describe the alien invasion is more important than the invasion itself.

Patrons who give $5 or more will also get an email going into detail about the inspiration behind the story and the writing process. This time around it includes a bonus piece of flash fiction that inspired Compel. It’s been a long time in becoming a full short story. Find out why it took so long by signing up here.